Larry Kart

Bassist Peter Ind's 1967 "Time for Improvisation" is an album of nothing but walking bass lines on the changes of various standards. Sounds like it would be boring, but it's fascinating. http://www.peterind.com/wave_catalogue.htm

I think it's very tricky to work back from what we know or think we know about a musician on a personal level to that musician's playing (or in Allen's example intuit someone's personality from his playing and then have it confirmed by personal contact and/or reliable information later on), a la Stan Getz's "playing in many respects is narcissitic, reflecting certain personality traits." First, there was a period when IMO Getz's playing did sound quite narcissistic, the time around the recording of "Focus" when he often would kind of moo or moan through the horn in a manner I found quite creepy; but that period stands in contrast, again IMO, with most of the rest of Getz's music, while one feels fairly certain that Getz the man was the same "nice bunch of guys" human being throughout his career. Then there's the case of Artie Shaw -- a narcissistic jerk in the very top class, but he pretty much played like angel, so go figure. I once tried in print to read the tea leaves of the relationship between Art Pepper's music and Pepper the person (it's in my book), but I think I failed.

"Stan Getz & J.J. Johnson at the Opera House": http://www.amazon.com/At-Opera-House-Stan-Getz/dp/B00000472O/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1366746750&sr=1-2&keywords=getz+opera+house The album combines tracks from two different JATP tour concerts, from 1958 IIRC -- one in Chicago (in mono, and at the Opera House), the other in Los Angeles (in stereo, at the Shrine Auditorium IIRC). IMO the mono tracks from Chicago are superb (they were on the original LP), the interaction between Getz and Johnson quite remarkable, but the Los Angeles stereo performances of the same pieces are only so-so.

I meant that I heard some similarities (in particular, short-breathed, rhythmically compulsive, "hocket-y" phrasing) between Donahue and Montrose as soloists, not between the style of Donahue's band and Montrose (though of course Donahue's solo work was heard within the context of his bands).

The Hep albums are what you want to check out. As for opportunities for influence, both Donohue and Montrose came from Detroit, though Donohue of course was a good deal older. A comment from Amazon on one of the Hep albums: 'Holy Cow does this thing swing like crazy! The finest group of all the "War" bands assembled. The trumpet section alone makes the knees buckle -- Conrad Gozzo,Frank Beach, Johnny Best and Don Jacoby! Sam basically took over Artie Shaw's Navy Orchestra, but turned it into a more "Basie" styled swing outfit. And boy did he succeed!!' Me again. Donohue added an extra alto to the sax section, which allowed him to indulge in some rich, thick voicings.

If I haven't said it before, Yakov Kasman: http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album.jsp?album_id=147390

It's all good so far, with the possible exception of "Festival," a track that attempts to recreate the excitement of Paul's Newport solo, and another track from the Emarcy date that's too fast for Paul's comfort. "Festival" goes on too long, but even so it has its moments. The mellower tracks have some gorgeous Gonsalves. And again there are some nice Terry originals.

Picked this up yesterday: http://www.amazon.com/Jack-Montrose-Blues-Vanilla-Horns/dp/B0032BH1OM and Montrose's style as a soloist and a writer remains as peculiar to me now as it did back then. In particular, as a player it's the peculiar neo-folksy/speech-like character of his lines, not unlike on the neo-folksy side what Jimmy Giuffre would get into a bit later on with his "Train and the River" trio, while the typically rather short-breathed, speech-like, "hocket-y" phrasing reminds a bit of Shafi Hadi. Montrose's often contrapuntal writing (though it usually lacks all trace of the typical West Coast "progressive" flavor) flowers (as did his solo work) in the company of his close friend baritone saxophonist Bob Gordon, who died in a car accident in 1955, but absent Gordon both his writing and playing can sound rather finicky at times and is marked by a rather "Indian beat" rhythmic feel, if you know what I mean -- a la "From the Land of Sky Blue Waters" or "Hawaiian War Chant." He made a late album for Don Schlitten, which I've never heard. His obit: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/jack-montrose-474568.html Just thought of who Montrose's solo style reminds me of -- Sam Donahue! Not impossible that there was some influence there; Donahue was a popular player in the '40s and led a fine service band, which he took over from Artie Shaw after Shaw was invalided back to the States.

Some very nice 1956-'57 Gonsalves here: http://www.amazon.com/Cookin-Paul-Gonsalves/dp/B0010T4C6I/ref=sr_1_3?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1366678433&sr=1-3&keywords=paul+gonsalves+fresh+sound Combines his part of an Emarcy anthology, his own Argo album and an Argo album led by Jimmy Woode, all dates with Clark Terry, who contributes several handsome pieces to Paul's Argo album. That album also includes the rather eccentric Chicago pianist Willie Jones, who sounds like Milt Buckner on acid. Willie Jones info: http://hubcap.clemson.edu/~campber/wiljo.html And there's a picture of Betty Dupree there.

Love "Old Devil Moon" -- what a swing feel it has; time is being eaten alive there.

Not before Brian Sandstrom or Curt Bley from the Russell crew or Russell Thorne from the earlier Joe Daley trio! Maybe not before Eddie de Haas, Charles Clark, Leonard Jones, Mchaka Uba and a bunch of others. Kessler is wonderful but the Chicago heritage is rich. edit to ad a comma. Don't forget Betty Dupree. I'll never forget her on the stand at the Gate of Horn on Monday nights circa 1956-7 in IIRC a skin-tight yellow cocktail dress. Also at that venue on Monday nights as a member of the more or less regular rhythm section (with Jodie Christian and Wilbur Campbell), Victor Sproles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Szymon_Goldberg If you have Spotify check out the Goldberg/Lupu K. 521. It's a great performance IMO of one of IMO the greatest pieces ever written. If you plug in Goldberg Lupu Mozart on Spotify, you'll get the whole set but undifferentiated. K. 521 begins sixth from the bottom of the whole schmeer.

Chuck -- I thought you'd mention this, but now I will: http://www.amazon.com/Tristan-Isolde-Act-Prelude-Liebestod/dp/B001JPNAYS It also can be found on Spotify, for those who have it, and can be listened to there complete.

Nah.

Szymon Goldberg/Radu Lupu, even though Goldberg is somewhat past his prime. An apt comment from a poster elsewhere: "I also like the Goldberg/Lupu recordings on Decca.... The violin tone is the tone of an old man, but has a special human quality, i can't describe."

Saturday. Funny, without remembering it was the day I was born, I've always had a good feeling about Saturdays.

Roscoe Mitchell/Mike Reed

If I didn't already know you were one of nature's noblemen, this post would prove it.

Modern poetry, perhaps, though my tastes are not all inclusive. General literature almost as much, though my tastes there also are not all inclusive, and besides there's too much for anyone (this side of Martin Seymour-Smith***) to claim expertise. But it's likely that I know something about a whole lot of stuff. I used to be well-versed in the history of old-time baseball and probably retain a lot of that information. The U.S. Navy in WWII (used to be able to diagram entire battles). Not quite expertise, but my head is full of a whole lot of general political/social/cultural history, dating back to Ancient Greece and the times of Abraham and Isaac. Pretty good on the history of the movies. I think that's about it. *** Seymour-Smith was a somewhat eccentric/contrarian English critic, poet, and biographer (of Robert Graves, Thomas Hardy and others) who wrote a massive guide to modern literature that speaks with would-be authority of a great many works in just about every language in which notable works of of modern lit have been written. The whole project seems impossible on the face of it, but mistakes/howlers are not to be found (as far as I can tell) and Seymour-Smith's literary judgment is damned shrewd for the most part. Can't begin to count the number of good things I've found because of him. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Seymour-Smith Apparently his polyglot wife Janet Seymour-Smith did a good deal of the reading/spadework for "The Guide to Modern Literature." http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-janet-seymoursmith-1198422.html

http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/chi-famed-cso-trumpeter-adolph-herseth-dead-at-91-20130414,0,6672669.column http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/19480525-421/cso-trumpet-great-adolph-bud-herseth-dies.html Two of his favorites, so I once was told, were Louis Armstrong and Maynard Ferguson, both for the obvious right reasons.

Actually, a quick re-listen to the Schornsheim set left me not in a favorable mood; the playing is good but too many of the works are early and slight.

Should you want to branch out into HIP Haydn keyboard concerti (some played on fortepiano, some on harpsichord, some on organ), this Christine Schornsheim set of eight concerti is very good IMO and nicely priced at Amazon at two discs for $16.94: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002ED6VL8/ref=wms_ohs_product_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1 It can be heard on Spotify.

Someone I tend to trust in the HIP realm (in part because he's heard almost everything that's available in that realm, in part because he has good taste in general) endorses the Apponyi. Their Op. 33 can be heard on Spotify, but that seems to be the only Haydn they've done.

Yes, it does -- on two tape cassettes.

Did an interview with him in about 1987 or '88 in his Palmer House hotel suite when he was promoting the strange short semi-autobographical book he wrote; he was really "on," very free form. The tape of that 90 minute or so interview, judiciously edited, might be the best Winters comedy album ever. Only problem might be that our photographer was so convulsed with laughter at times that he obscured some of what Winters was saying.